Match Report


ALTRINCHAM (2) 3 HYDE FC (1) 2

Cheshire Senior Cup game
played on Tuesday, 16 November 2010, at 7.45pm


SUMMARY:

Altrincham squeezed past Hyde to earn a second round Cheshire Senior Cup tie away at Runcorn Linnets. With only four players starting this game for Alty compared with the line-up which started against Luton last Saturday, and with two youth team players on the bench, manager Ken McKenna opted to rest many of his first-choice players ahead of a third successive league game against top-three opposition this Saturday.

Damian Reeves, already the club's top scorer this season despite starting only nine matches, enhanced his cause with two goals. The first was a stooping header after a fiercely struck freekick from Nicky Clee was beaten out by Russell Saunders in the 9th minute. But Hyde equalised almost immediately as Alty defended a corner woefully, allowing an unchallenged close range volley into the net by Lees (12 mins). Ryan Brown's smartly taken left-footed goal from Hewson's feed restored Alty's lead in the 34th minute.

When Damian Reeves made it 3-1 with a superb goal just 38 seconds into the second half it looked all over for Hyde. Reeves scored from the right touchline about 35 yards out, lobbing Saunders who could only push the superbly flighted ball onto the inside of his back post before gathering it behind the goal line. Alty then failed to take several decent chances to put the game to bed, with Reeves spurning a couple of chances to complete his hat-trick.


SCORERS:

  • 9 mins: Damian REEVES (Altrincham 1 Hyde FC 0)
  • 12 mins: Mark LEES (Altrincham 1 Hyde FC 1)
  • 34 mins: Ryan BROWN (Altrincham 2 Hyde FC 1)
  • 46 mins: Damian REEVES (Altrincham 3 Hyde FC 1)
  • 77 mins: Dean STOTT (Altrincham 3 Hyde FC 2)


    REFEREE: Mr T. Massey


    ATTENDANCE: 221


    TEAM NEWS

    Altrincham made seven changes from Saturday's game with Luton; only Brown, Danylyk, Clee and Baynes started both tonight and in that match.


    BACKGROUND:

    This match had been postponed shortly before kick off two weeks earlier, after heavy rain had hit Moss Lane.


    LINE-UPS

    ALTRINCHAM (Red & white stripes, black shorts, red socks): 21. James COATES, 22. Michael WELCH, 4. Marc JOSEPH, 15. Ryan BROWN, 16. Anthony DANYLYK, 20. Sam HEWSON, 7. Robbie LAWTON, 11. Nicky CLEE, 17. Wes BAYNES, 10. Chris DENHAM, 8. Damian REEVES Subs: 5. Robbie WILIAMS, 27. Andy MILNE, 1. Stuart COBURN, * Ashley WOODS, * Matt FEARON.

    HYDE FC: 1. Russ Saunders, 2. Dean Stott, 3. Andrew Smart, 4. Scott McNiven, 5. Chris Rimmer, 6, Ben Morris, 7. Mark Lees, 8. Matty Burke, 9. Scott Mooney, 10. Marcus Calvert, 11. Tom Manship, Subs: 14. Steve Halford, 12. Dale Johnson, 15. Chris Lynch, 16. Neil Tolson, 17. Will Burns.


    REPORT


    The match got under way on a cold evening with Hyde settling the more quickly into a good rhythm. Alty's first real attacking threat came from an impressive run up the left by Clee but no one was on the end of his low cross (7 mins). When Rimmer fouled Reeves just outside the front edge of the box, slightly right of centre, Altrincham got their first clear sight of goal. Though Saunders did well to beat out his former team-mate Nicky Clee's fiercely hit, low freekick, the loose ball ran to the incoming Reeves, whose stooping header propelled it into the net (9 mins).

    But the lead did not last long as Hyde won a corner on their left. In the centre of the goalmouth Lees was left unmarked and he simply half-volleyed the corner into the Alty net to make it 1-1. Soon afterwards, another corner underlined Alty's defensive disorganisation at this stage as Burke rose, unchallenged, but the ball skimmed wide off his head (17 mins). Next, Calvert forced a save from Coates (19 mins), at the cost of a corner, as the visitors were producing the more coherent football at this stage.

    Things improved as a good ball from Danylyk found Denham but, in gathering the ball, he was driven left and his shot from an acute angle was comfortably saved (21 mins). Altrincham's defending almost let them down again when following a freekick, Coates had to save well at point blank range from Mooney at the back post.

    But then Reeves collected a routine ball and span smartly to fire in a shot which came back off the Hyde crossbar (31 mins). Altrincham regained the lead in the 34th minute when a good, threaded pass forward by Hewson, following neat work by Denham, allowed Brown to send a first-time left-footed shot into the net from around 12 yards.

    Alty remained dominant as half-time approached, a period enlivened by Alty kitman John Skelhorn's efforts with the "time added" display board, with which he was entrusted in the absence of a fourth match official. Whilst John showed more dexterity than many a regular fourth official in showing the correct figure of two minutes, the nearby linesman told him off for displaying it 30 seconds too early!

    So, after some indifferent defending early in the game, Alty had done just enough to merit their interval lead.


    Half-Time: ALTRINCHAM 2 HYDE FC 1

    Just 38 seconds into the second half, Damian Reeves picked up a ball along the right touchline from Robbie Lawton. Showing a quick eye for goal, he had spotted Saunders off his line and, from at least 35 yards out, (nearer to 50 yards if the diagonal flight of the ball were measured), he lobbed a superb goal. The looping ball dropped over the back-pedalling Saunders, who did well to palm it onto the inside of the post but it dropped inside the net before the keeper could scoop it away.

    Baynes then shot wide (49 mins) before an Alty corner on the left led to three shots in succession from Alty. Firstly, Reeves saw an effort blocked, as did Hewson with a follow-up, before the loose ball came out to Baynes who fired high over the bar (57 mins).

    Following a foul on Hewson, Joseph was mysteriously booked, presumably for a verbal offence (61 mins). Soon afterwards Hyde brought on Dale Johnson and Chris Lynch for Calvert and Manship. Denham also came off for Alty as Andrew Milne came on. Altrincham now went through a sloppy patch, allowing Hyde back into the game through sloppy errors.

    Indeed, former Alty striker Dale Johnson scored an offside goal, which was ruled out as youth team player Ashley Woods prepared to come on for the injured Danylyk; the change took place in the 75th minute. With his first touch Woods played in Reeves who netted, but his effort, too, was ruled out for offside. Just a minute later, Hyde made it 3-2 when Stott netted from 20 yards.

    Alty responded by bringing on central defender Robbie Williams for Joseph (81 mins). The closing stages were end to end with Alty unable to land a killer fourth goal and Hyde unable to score an equalizer. Alty won two late corners before Reeves was played in but missed his chance of a hat trick by shooting at Saunders (83 mins).

    The final whistle arrived after two minutes added time to give Altrincham a place in Round Two, away at Runcorn Linnets. They had deserved to win but Hyde had pushed them all the way.


    Full-Time: ALTRINCHAM 3 HYDE FC 2